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Sometimes it’s difficult to tell whether it’s the publicist or the celebrity that screwed up, but in this case there certainly is no question. Robert Pattinson’s publicist made a big mistake. I would call it a possible CEM, which, as defined by the one and only Bill Sledzik, is a Career Ending Move.

Before going any further, I will confess to being a Twilight fan, but am neither on “Team Edward” nor do I have any strong feelings for or against Pattinson. The blame for this one really just lands on the publicist.

At the New Moonpremiere, Ryan Seacrest had an interview booth set up on the red carpet. The always charming and surprisingly funny Pattinson stopped in for a quick interview. Seacrest asks Pattinson a couple questions about the movie and then asks about his relationship with co-star Kristen Stewart, who plays Bella in the movie. For anyone that doesn’t follow the celeb gossip, Pattinson and Stewart have been rumored to be dating since the first movie but neither will admit or deny it.

What she did…

Pattison’s publicist interrupted the interview at that point and waved Pattinson to leave. She declared the interview over and as you’ll see in the video, made bother Pattinson and Seacrest uncomfortable.

This was not some local radio DJ, it was Ryan Seacrest! If you’re going to make an ass out of yourself and client, don’t do it in front of one of, if not the biggest, TV and radio personality in Hollywood. He tweeted about it saying “Robert Pattinson is [a] class act. However the rep he was with yanked him off the air and off the mic when I asked about Kristen. Unreal!”

What she should have done…

First and foremost, she should have kept quiet. A publicist should stay behind the scenes and never make himself or herself the story rather than the client. She should work on looking more put together and pleasant. Since she is clearly going to be caught on camera, she should prepare accordingly. As in this case, she will end up making her client look bad. Tons of bloggers are talking about her nasty demeanor and frazzled look.

She should have prepped Pattinson with talking points and key messages to hit on during interviews months ago. He is the man of the minute and it is obvious that he is going to be asked certain questions. Actually, they should have been preparing for the Stewart question for about two years because he’s been asked this ever since the Twilight madness began.

She clearly doesn’t trust Pattinson; if she did she wouldn’t have interrupted him. If she gave him talking points and advised him on what to do when asked about his personal life with Stewart, then she should let him make his own choices on how to take that counsel and implement it during interviews.

What Pattinson should have done…

He should have apologized for his staff member’s rude behavior and then said that he tries to keep his personal life as private as he can and would rather not talk about it. He then should have just transitioned back to talking about the movie.

I do have to say, he recovered pretty well on his own. He came off looking like the good guy and even shook Seacrest’s hand and told the audience to see the movie because it’s “amazing.”

Maybe he is a close to perfect in real life and his fictional character, but I’d say he’s just a nice guy.